THE STYLE of the building embodies the spirit of Reformation Christianity: tradition in modern terms.
THE BAPTISMAL FONT is located at the entrance of the building because, in Lutheran belief, Holy Baptism is the “door” into the Christian Church, our birth into God’s family. (St. John 3:5)
THE PASCHAL CANDLE, symbolic of our risen Lord, stands next to the Font as a reminder that in Holy Baptism we become partakers of his death and resurrection. (Romans 6:3-4)
THE GOLD NIMBUS on the Cross atop the Baptistery Tower, and on the great Chancel Cross, represents Eternity and announces God’s eternal love revealed to us through the historical event of Christ’s Sacrifice. (St. John 3:16-17)
THE ALPHA AND OMEGA, which frame the Chancel Cross, are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, proclaiming that Christ is “the beginning and the end” of our faith. (Revelation 1:8)
THE SANCTUARY LAMP, which burns continually above the Tabernacle in the Chancel, reminds us of Christ’s abiding presence with his people in the Sacrament of Holy Communion. (St. Matthew 28:18-20; St. John 20:21-23)
THE ALTAR, harking back to the Israel’s celebration of the Passover, is where Christ's “new Israel,” the Church, celebrates its share in his Exodus from the “Egypt” of sin and death. In the Lord’s Supper, his victorious sacrifice is made present and applied to us for the forgiveness of our sins and for our continual formation as his “one Body.” (St. Matthew 26:26-29; I Corinthians 10:16-17) Even as Holy Baptism is our birth into God’s family, so Holy Communion is our family meal in which each week we receive our foretaste of the great and promised feast of the Kingdom. The Font and the Altar stand at opposite ends of the building to remind us that our whole Christian life is a journey from Holy Baptism to the heavenly banquet, the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.
THE LECTERN, dating from the reading desk in the Jewish Synagogue, is the focus of the Church’s celebration of God’s saving Word in Scripture and Sermon. (I Corinthians 15:1-7)
THE HOLY VESTMENTS worn by the Celebrant, Deacon, Lector, and Acolytes, proclaim the historical continuity of our worship with centuries of Christian prayer and praise, and that our Congregation truly is united with “All Saints” of every time and every place.
THE SUPREME SYMBOL in this sacred space is the Liturgy of Word and Sacrament. The Liturgy is always our “Emmaus,” for in it the risen Lord still “opens to us the Scriptures” and “reveals himself to us in the breaking of the bread.” (St. Luke 24:28-35)
THE BAPTISMAL FONT is located at the entrance of the building because, in Lutheran belief, Holy Baptism is the “door” into the Christian Church, our birth into God’s family. (St. John 3:5)
THE PASCHAL CANDLE, symbolic of our risen Lord, stands next to the Font as a reminder that in Holy Baptism we become partakers of his death and resurrection. (Romans 6:3-4)
THE GOLD NIMBUS on the Cross atop the Baptistery Tower, and on the great Chancel Cross, represents Eternity and announces God’s eternal love revealed to us through the historical event of Christ’s Sacrifice. (St. John 3:16-17)
THE ALPHA AND OMEGA, which frame the Chancel Cross, are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, proclaiming that Christ is “the beginning and the end” of our faith. (Revelation 1:8)
THE SANCTUARY LAMP, which burns continually above the Tabernacle in the Chancel, reminds us of Christ’s abiding presence with his people in the Sacrament of Holy Communion. (St. Matthew 28:18-20; St. John 20:21-23)
THE ALTAR, harking back to the Israel’s celebration of the Passover, is where Christ's “new Israel,” the Church, celebrates its share in his Exodus from the “Egypt” of sin and death. In the Lord’s Supper, his victorious sacrifice is made present and applied to us for the forgiveness of our sins and for our continual formation as his “one Body.” (St. Matthew 26:26-29; I Corinthians 10:16-17) Even as Holy Baptism is our birth into God’s family, so Holy Communion is our family meal in which each week we receive our foretaste of the great and promised feast of the Kingdom. The Font and the Altar stand at opposite ends of the building to remind us that our whole Christian life is a journey from Holy Baptism to the heavenly banquet, the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.
THE LECTERN, dating from the reading desk in the Jewish Synagogue, is the focus of the Church’s celebration of God’s saving Word in Scripture and Sermon. (I Corinthians 15:1-7)
THE HOLY VESTMENTS worn by the Celebrant, Deacon, Lector, and Acolytes, proclaim the historical continuity of our worship with centuries of Christian prayer and praise, and that our Congregation truly is united with “All Saints” of every time and every place.
THE SUPREME SYMBOL in this sacred space is the Liturgy of Word and Sacrament. The Liturgy is always our “Emmaus,” for in it the risen Lord still “opens to us the Scriptures” and “reveals himself to us in the breaking of the bread.” (St. Luke 24:28-35)